Four Day Weekend
by ashleezak
Summary: Charlie and Amita leave for a class related hiking trip. And of course, when does anything go according to plan? CharlieAmita
1. Chapter 1

Friday Morning

Charlie Eppes paused in packing his backpack to look around. He didn't see anything that he'd missed, but he methodically checked his closet, drawers, and desk for overlooked items.

"So, how long is this trip?" Alan asked from Charlie's doorway.

"It's just overnight," the younger man answered automatically. He rearranged the contents again to make it fit better.

"And where are you going?"

Charlie wrapped his compass in a small towel and carefully stowed it in a side pocket of his backpack. "Into the mountains, heading north."

"Who all will be in your group?"

Charlie finally stood up and looked at his father. "It's a group of physics students from our department. It's actually a class project that Larry devised to study the feasibility of developing new roads. I'm going along to consult on the math aspect." Cocking his head, he stared at Alan. "Am I allowed to go now?"

Alan chuckled at the subtle jibe. "All right. I can see how that looked like I was grilling you. I give." He looked over the gear still stacked on the bed. "But I do have to ask. Do you have a first aid kit?"

"Yep."

"Extra clothes?"

"Two sets."

"Cell phone?"

Charlie pulled it out of the padded carrier attached to his belt. "With GPS."

"Extra snacks?"

"'Plan for one, pack for three.' Yes, Dad, I know. I'll be fine." Charlie quickly finished stowing the last few items. "I'm not trying to be sarcastic, but you've trained me and Don very well over the years."

"I know. It's just that any time you go out like that, accidents can happen."

"I'll be careful, Dad."

He did accept a ride from Alan because he couldn't ride his bike with the hiking frame. The group of students were milling outside the math building on campus.

"I'll call you tomorrow evening when I get back into town," Charlie promised. Alan accepted the assurance, wished him well, and drove off.

"You're late," a husky female voice drawled in his ear.

He turned to smile at Amita, taking note that she looked adorable with her hair braided into twin ropes that hung over each shoulder. The style suited her, but also made her look very young.

"I made it," he teased. "Although I considered just ditching the whole thing. You know, I've got that paper to get finished."

"Oh right. You love this stuff," she said as she smacked his arm.

By this time Larry had taken his position on the stairs and began giving directions to the students. It only took a few moments to give out the driving assignments.

Charlie frowned. "Did he forget me? He knows I don't have a car," he said softly to Amita.

She smiled, bringing to Charlie's mind an illustration of the Cheshire Cat. "Don't worry. You'll get there."

"How?" he asked suspiciously. "You don't have a car, either."

"You'll see." She moved forward to help assuage the general confusion as the twenty or so students moved toward the assigned vehicles.

It was only after the last of the students had been stowed and left that he turned to face the only person left. "Okay. What'll I see?"

Charlie wondered at the playful attitude of his friend. He followed her obediently, winding across the emptier than normal parking lot. Surprised, he saw her stop beside a very nice, but very small car. She turned and jingled the keys at him.

"I borrowed it for the weekend. And it's only a two-seater," she said enigmatically.

Shrugging, he struggled to fit his and Amita's backpacks into the tiny trunk as she got into the driver's seat. He quickly got in and fastened his seat belt, looking over at her as she settled in comfortably. The ride to the rendezvous point was very pleasant, and to Charlie's mind, too quick. He was so distracted by the comfortable rapport between him and Amita that he didn't even notice at first that they were the only ones visible.

"Where is everybody?" he asked in confusion.

"I told Larry that we'd meet up with him this afternoon. There's something I want to show you." She heaved her frame up on her back. "I used to come up here and hike a lot in high school."

"Lead away," Charlie said. He wasn't sure what was going on. Amita's behavior had definitely been unusual since that case where they'd met the Indian girls. Charlie blushed slightly. It wasn't the case that had gotten his attention, he admitted. It was the quick kiss that an enthusiastic Amita had given him.

He was used to giving her appreciative glances, but it had unnerved him to catch her staring at him at odd times. After the disastrous date, he had pretty well resigned himself to the fact that he couldn't have a normal relationship. Thirty years was long enough to have been able to form at least one relationship that lasted longer than two months. Yet something about her kept catching his attention.

It didn't take long to realize that he needed to keep his attention on the trail. It had quickly turned quite rough. Several portions of the trail required climbing over stones and winding through brush. Charlie had always considered he rocky terrain to be fascinating. The brilliant blue sky contrasted with the sandy blonde hills, making him glad that he had worn his sunglasses.

His trips into nature had begun as urgings from his parents to get him out of his room and away from his books. It was also one of the few situations where he and Don had been on nearly equal footing. The family outings had continued until the year that both of them graduated, but Charlie had missed them fiercely. He and his mother had made a few attempts, but they had found the overly verdant and humid weather of the Mid-Atlantic not as refreshing as the much drier climate of L.A.

An hour later, Amita led him up onto a ridge. Charlie stopped and gazed about in awe.

"This is gorgeous!" he breathed. The height of the ridge gave them a spectacular view.

She smiled happily. "I used to come up here and do my thinking. I even brought homework sometimes. If you want to come this way a little further, there's something else I want to show you."

"After you."

Amita led him down a faint path. The loose gravel and sandy surface made the going much slower than the ascent. Both of them carefully placed their feet, making sure that the surface wouldn't slide as they worked their way downhill.

Fifteen minutes later, Amita showed him a little cave up a narrow ravine.

"This was my secret getaway. I found it one day and just loved it."

Charlie looked around appreciatively. "This is great. Do you know how far back it goes?"

"Not very far. But there is a little spring back there, just out of sight."

"Where does it drain to?" Charlie asked, interest plain on his face.

"I don't know. Did you bring a flashlight?"

He produced one with a flourish. "'Plan for one, pack for three.'" He ducked his head uncertainly. "One of Dad's little proverbs. Plan for one day, pack for three days."

"Smart." She took the flashlight, turned it on, and led him toward the spring.

They could hear it before they saw it. A tiny stream of water leaked out of crack in the back wall of the cave. It trickled down an indentation into a rather wide, but shallow pool.

Amita shone the light into the dark water. "It looks like there's a subterranean outlet down there." She gestured with the beam. "I never actually thought to look before."

As much as Charlie appreciated the time alone with Amita, he realized that they did need to rejoin the rest of the group. Glancing at his watch, he asked, "What time did you say we were meeting up with Larry?"

"About lunchtime. What time is it?"

"It's almost ten-thirty. We need to get moving."

They both sighed in unison at the necessity of having to join the others. Amita handed the light back to Charlie, who stowed it back in his pack. They headed out of the cave.

Blinking in the bright sunlight, they took a drink from their canteens and began ascending the path. They were nearly to the top of the path when Charlie felt his foot slide on the ground. He looked around at the curious dust clouds rising.

"Is the wind picking up?" he asked, just as it hit. This time he recognized the tremor for what it was, an earthquake. He reached forward for Amita just as she lost her footing and began sliding back down the steep trail.

Bracing himself as well as he could against the shaking ground, he caught her. The added weight forced his knee to buckle, throwing him backward with her. He heard her screams ringing in his ears as he wrapped his arms around her to protect her as much as possible as they tumbled down the hill.

Charlie felt something rip Amita from his arms as his rolling became more of a slide. He tried to blink the dirt from his eyes to see where she went when the world stopped abruptly and went dark.

Amita lay gasping as dirt and debris rained over her. She realized that the shaking had stopped, and from her own survival training, she lay still until she could analyze the situation.

Opening her eyes, she saw a thick haze of dust hanging over her. She couldn't see Charlie yet, so she concentrated on her own position. Her backpack had caught on a rocky protuberance, halting her fall down the hill. She mentally sorted out whether or not she was hurt, and other than a number of scrapes and bruises, she didn't think anything was too badly injured. Sitting up, she pulled her pack loose from the rock.

"Charlie!" she called, cautiously scooting down on her behind. "Charlie, are you all right?"

Through the dust cloud, the silence was unnerving. The only sounds she heard were the clatter of small rocks that she was dislodging with her descent. She kept calling his name with no answer.

She was really getting concerned when she saw something through the dust. Charlie's pack was lying against a large rock just ahead of her. Quickening her pace, she slid down beside it to see that it was still partially attached to him. He was lying on his side, facing the boulder.

"Charlie!" she gasped as she pulled the tangled and dusty curls back from his face. Through the dirt she saw blood leaving dark trails across his forehead. He was unconscious. She pulled the pack from his shoulders and rolled him onto his back. There was a nasty knot forming under a second, deeper looking, cut.

"Charlie! Can you hear me?" she pleaded, panicking.

His low moan never sounded so good to her. Blinking back tears of relief, she gently brushed as much grime as she could off of his face.

He blinked a few times before opening his eyes and focusing on her face. "Ow."

In spite of herself, she giggled. "I'll bet." With him awake, she began looking to see if there were other obvious injuries. "Hold still. I need to check you out."

With the pounding in his head he was more than willing to stay as still as possible. Even her gentle hands brought winces as she found sore spots.

"It doesn't look like anything's broken," she said. "At least, no arms or legs. How's your head?"

"Splitting in two," he gasped as he struggled to sit up. He accepted her assistance as she helped him sit up and lean against the stone. He reached for his cell phone when he realized it was gone. Looking down, he saw the remains of the strap still clinging to his belt.

"Where's your cell phone?" he asked Amita. "Mine's gone."

She pulled hers out of her pocket and flipped it open. Her face fell as she turned it toward him to show the spider-webbed and dark screen. "It must have …"

"Broken during the fall," Charlie finished for her. He sighed as he leaned his head back, considering their options. He looked up the trail. "Do you think you can help me up?" he asked. "We aren't going to be able to stay here."

"Yeah," she said, taking heart from his calm assessment. "Are you sure?"

Inhaling, he grabbed the rock and began trying to pull himself up. Amita quickly assisted. Charlie leaned against the boulder, panting against the pain in his head. "Let's get moving."

He pulled himself upright and took a step forward. His knee gave out from him and he collapsed forward.

"Charlie!" she cried as she knelt beside him.

He moaned as he rolled over. "My knee."

Amita carefully pulled his jeans leg up over his knee and hissed at what she saw. The knee was already swelling and discoloring.

"Bad, huh?" Charlie groaned as she eased his jeans back into place.

She sat down in a heap. "Um, yeah. There's not going to be any way you can climb up the mountain with that." The seriousness of the situation began to sink in as she thought about the ramifications of her words.

He propped himself up on his elbows. "What about down?"

"Down?" she repeated.

"Yeah. I can't go up, but do you think I could get down? We need shelter, because it'll be at least tomorrow before someone starts looking for us."

Amita sighed and nodded, but was at the same time reassured that he was thinking so clearly. "Shelter? You're thinking the cave?"

He nodded.

"Won't that make it harder to find us?"

"That's a risk we're going to have to take. We can't stay out here." Charlie sat up and began pulling his pack over to him. "I've got enough stuff for three days. What did you pack?"

"I have enough for two," she said.

"If we're careful, we could probably stretch it out a little longer than that. By that time, maybe my knee will be good enough for us to get out of here if we haven't been found." Holding up the hiking frame, he stared at it with a critical eye.

"What are you looking for?" she asked.

"I'm thinking that if we can rig up the pack part to wear on my back, I can maybe use the frame to help me walk. It's going to be too dangerous if you have to support us both."

"Don't worry about wearing the pack. I'll come back and get it. Let's just worry about getting you settled down there." She stood up and pulled her pack back on.

Charlie stripped the pack down to the frame. Accepting help from Amita, he climbed to his feet, avoiding putting too much weight on the twisted knee. Cautiously he tested the frame, digging it into the ground and leaning on it. Satisfied that it would hold his weight, he looked at her. "Ready?"

She nodded and turned question back at him. "Are you ready?"

"Yeah."

They began carefully making their way back down the hill to the cave. The fall had taken them most of the way down the hillside, but there was still some very tough spots to navigate. The debris that was still settling didn't aid their trek.

Amita still wasn't sure about Charlie's idea until the aftershock hit. She dropped to her knees as the sandy ground began sifting under her feet. She looked up to see that Charlie had dropped down and was protecting his knee. Wincing at the small rocks bouncing off her, she tried to shield herself as much as she could.

The quake didn't last long, but it was long enough to demonstrate the necessity for shelter. As soon as she was sure that it was safe, she rose shakily to her feet and held out her hand. "Are you all right?"

Charlie wiped the sweat off his face, smearing dirt and blood. "Alive. How about you?"

"Fine," she said as she heaved him back to his feet. "Go on?"

He nodded and they proceeded slowly. The hike that had taken them fifteen minutes originally took over an hour to return. Charlie kept swiping at the sweat that his efforts produced, and grimaced when he saw blood staining his arm. Breathing silent thanks that Amita was walking behind him, he pressed on. He sighed happily when the cave came into view.

Amita carefully walked past Charlie, who had stopped at the entrance to lean against it and catch his breath. She dropped her pack and turned to face him. "Charlie! You're bleeding again." She quickly cleared a space on the cave floor for him. Rushing over, she slipped under the arm on his bad side. "Come on."

He allowed her to lead. His energy had been focused on getting down there, and since they were there, the adrenaline was fading quickly, letting him feel all the aches and pains. She settled him down as comfortably as possible before giving him a drink from her canteen.

"At least we have a water supply," she said gratefully.

Charlie agreed as he sipped the warm water. "Sit down and rest before you go back out to get the rest of the stuff."

She sank down reluctantly. "I really want to get everything in here before it gets too late."

He squinted to read his watch through the cracked face. "It's only noon. You've got time."

Acknowledging his point, she took the canteen and sipped slowly. "Larry won't even be missing us yet."

"I hope Larry's group was luckier than we were. That was a decent size quake."

"I never even thought about Larry," she admitted in embarrassment.

"Understandable." He leaned his head back and closed his eyes.

"Don't do that," Amita said sharply. She flushed at the uncertain look he gave her. "You've got an awful knot on your head, which means that you could have a concussion."

He nodded slightly. "Do you have a first aid kit in your pack?"

"Yeah, but it's just a small one." She rummaged around before she pulled out a small plastic box. Scooting over to his side, she began pulling out bandages.

"Actually, I was wanting some aspirin," he said.

"Oh." She dug out a small package of pills. "Here."

He took them silently. "I'm all right now if you want to go get the pack."

"Are you sure?" At his nod, she stood up. "I should be back in a little while."

Charlie watched her leave, feeling really hopeless. He hoped nothing happened to her while she was out there.

Don felt the tremors in his office. It didn't feel like much, but he'd learned from that buildings weren't always the best gauge of how strong an earthquake was. Out of habit, he dialed his father's number. He got the answering machine and started to be concerned until he remembered that this was Alan's day to volunteer downtown and Charlie was still in class. He left a brief message explaining that he was just checking on them and hung up.

After the aftershocks had finished rumbling through, he put the whole thing behind him. It was only a mild one, and there were no reports of major damage anywhere in the city.

He had just filed his weekly paperwork when his phone rang. Scooping it up, he said distractedly, "Eppes."

"Hey, Donnie."

"Hey, Dad. What's up?"

"I was just wondering if you tried calling Charlie when you called here," Alan said, trying to keep the worry out of his voice.

"No. He's in class, isn't he?" Don asked, not understanding his father's concern.

"He went on a hiking trip with Larry's class, and when I called his cell phone, I got his voice mail."

"Yeah, so? He probably forgot to take it."

"Don, I watched him pack it. He strapped it right to his belt."

Finally Alan's concern shot though the agent. Still trying to play devil's advocate and not assume the worst, he asked, "You saw him pack it. Is it possible that he had it turned off?"

Don could almost see the hand that went over Alan's eyes as he answered that. "Yes, it's possible. It's very possible." He laughed uncertainly. "And that's probably much more likely than something happening. I just thought that with the earthquake…"

"His phone has GPS, right? Even if something did happen, we'll find him, Dad," Don assured him.

"Thanks, son. I'll just keep trying him and see if he checks his voice mail."

"I'll check it out, too." An idea flashed to him. "I'll keep you posted, okay?"

"All right." There was a short pause. "Thanks, Don."

"You're welcome, Dad."

He had barely hung up the phone when Megan poked her head into his office. "I saw that look. What's up?"

"Dad can't get a hold of Charlie and he's worried." Don pulled out his cell phone and began paging through his stored numbers. "Apparently he's on a hiking trip with Larry." He held up a hand as he dialed Larry's cell number. He frowned as he got Larry's voice mail. Don left a short message and hung up.

"They might be out of cell range," Megan suggested, obviously trying to keep a positive attitude.

"Yeah, now that's possible. Or that quake could have knocked out some cell towers," he said slowly. Looking up at Megan, he said, "Can you find out where the epicenter of that one was? I'm going to call Dad and see if he knows exactly where Charlie went."

She nodded and left. Don really didn't want to make this call, but he needed the information. The phone was answered on the first ring.

"You've found him?"

"No, not yet, Dad. Listen, did Charlie mention where he was going?"

"He said they were going to the mountains, heading north."

"If Larry's taking his class, he probably let exact directions on campus in case there was an emergency. I'll call over and check it out."

Don put in a call to the department chair's office, where the secretary gave him an exact route they were due to take, along with an approximate timetable. He took the information and plotted it out on his office maps. Laughing, he sat back and relaxed.

Megan stuck her head in the door again. "The epicenter was about thirty miles northeast of here," she said. "Now, what's so funny?"

He pointed at the map. "Larry really knows how to pick them. His group was out of cell range before they even started hiking." Sighing in relief, he observed, "And that epicenter wasn't that close to them."

"So they're both out of range and chances are that there's nothing wrong with them," Megan said in relief.

"I'll tell Dad not to start worrying until tomorrow evening, at least," Don said. Picking up the phone he dialed his dad's number for the third time that day.

"You found him?"

"No, I didn't. But don't worry," Don said easily.

"Don't worry? I got Larry's voice mail too," Alan protested.

Don wasn't surprised that Alan's instincts ran so close to his own. "There's a good reason for that. The trail that Larry picked out is completely out of cell range. There's nothing up there." There was a long silence on the phone. "Dad, are you still there?"

"Then what's the point of having those annoying little things around if they're not going to work when you need them?" he ranted.

"We checked where the epicenter was and it's not that close. I wouldn't start worrying until at least tomorrow afternoon," Don said. "There are very logical reasons for why we can't reach them."

"You're right, Donnie. You're right." Alan sighed. "It's just that, well, I feel like something happened to Charlie. I can't explain it."

"All right. Worst case scenario. Is he alone?"

"No, he's with a group."

"Is he unprepared?"

"No, he packed enough for three days." Alan conceded, "All right, all right. I'll wait until tomorrow to worry."

"Listen. If I knew Charlie was in trouble, I'd be the first one out there, but right now, there's no reason to think that he's doing anything except having fun on a hike."

"You're right. So, I'll cook if you want to come over," Alan offered.

Don heard the plea in his father's voice. "Yeah. I'll be done here about six. I'll see you later, all right?"

"See you."

The agent sat back in his chair. He trusted his father's instincts, but there was absolutely no evidence that there was anything wrong. He just hoped that he wasn't wrong at the cost of his brother's safety.

The final trip back to the cave was the most exhausting for Amita. She was worried about Charlie. That knee didn't look like it was going to be all right in three or four days. She chided herself for not checking the joints. She had just checked for major broken bones.

She climbed back over the last little rise of debris. There was no noise in the cave, and fear shot through her. Rushing her steps as much as she could, she saw Charlie where she'd left him. He had constructed a pillow out of her pack and had laid down and gone to sleep.

Dropping his gear, she rushed over to him. "Charlie? Wake up, Charlie. Charlie!"

He jerked awake, then pressed a hand to his aching head. "What?"

"You're not supposed to be sleeping. Remember?" she said a little sharply.

Charlie grimaced and sat up. "Fine. You win." He saw his pack. "How about we sort out our supplies and see what we have?"

"Not yet." She went back over and pulled his first aid kit out. "I knew with Alan you'd have a better kit than me. Mine came from the campus bookstore." Taking his flashlight, she used one of the camping bowls and brought back a pan of clean water from the back of the cave. She sat down and began cleaning the cuts on his head.

Charlie knew that it hurt, but for the life of him, he couldn't quite bring himself to care. Seeing Amita this close was intoxicating. Every so often, she leaned close enough for him to feel her breath on his face, and it took every ounce of self-control not to just lean forward and kiss her.

For the first time in his adult life, Charlie Eppes gave in to an irrational urge. He waited until she leaned close again and kissed her. He enjoyed every millisecond he could, fully expecting her to pull back in shock. Instead, she seemed to be waiting for him. He waited another breath length before pushing just a little farther.

Amita had no idea when her hands stopped cleaning and started clinging. All she knew is that her hands were buried deeply into his hair and they were kissing, hard. A very small part of her, the analytical part, screamed at her that there was something wrong here. She was successfully ignoring that until her conscience joined the battle. Abruptly she pulled away and stared at him, dazed.

Charlie's eyes were round and so dark they looked black. He had an expression on his face that she wasn't familiar with, and he looked unusually accessible. "What was that?" she demanded breathlessly.

He stared at her for just a little longer before breaking the contact. Ducking his head, he said softly, "I kissed you. Since you kissed me before, I thought…well, I guess I didn't think."

"Charlie…" she began helplessly. No words came to mind for that particular confession. Charlie, not thinking? "Charlie, I think maybe…Well, you did hit your head," she said weakly.

"No! I'm tired of nobody thinking I know my own mind," he snapped. His eyes were alight with something else now, and Amita couldn't help but notice that the anger was almost as striking. "I was trying to respect your own words that you weren't ready for a commitment. Then you go and kiss me. Since I know you're not a shallow woman, I thought there was really something there. Was I wrong?" His voice had turned appealing, and he sought her gaze again.

She wondered why words refused to come in response to that, and she simply stared at this new man. He was the same old Charlie, but what had happened to him? Wasn't this what she had been hoping for? Carefully, she reached out and took his hand.

He twined his fingers within hers readily and slowly pulled her forward. They stared at each other until their faces were only inches apart. This time neither made the first move, but somehow they met in the middle in complete harmony. Amita shuddered as his free hand slid up her arm and ended up caressing the back of her neck. Emboldened by his move, she combed her hand into his hair.

It took something as banal as a rumbling stomach to separate them. They finally pulled back and looked at each other before bursting out laughing.

"Who was that?" Amita giggled.

"I don't know, and I really don't care," grinned Charlie. "Does it matter?"

"It is past lunchtime," she said, backing off slightly.

Charlie sighed before pulling his own pack over to see what was in it. They sorted out supplies and made a light lunch, keeping in mind they didn't know how long they would be stuck in the cave. It didn't dampen their spirits too much, though.

After eating Amita finished bandaging Charlie's head, laughing as she dodged kisses. They also wrapped his knee, trying to produce enough to support so that he wasn't entirely helpless.

It was only when the sun set and the temperature began to drop did they begin feeling odd. Neither of them wanted to admit that this made sleeping arrangements uncomfortable. Without really discussing it, they laid their sleeping bags out on opposite sides of the cave floor. They settled in early, although neither one was sleepy. A long silence stretched between them, which started becoming strained. Charlie finally broke the spell with a question about an algorithm that he and Amita had been working on earlier. Within moments they had a deep and spirited discussion going.

Another silence grew, but this one held no threat. Charlie marveled at the difference.

"We're fine if we talk about math, and we're fine if we're…not really talking," he said. "Do you think that's enough?"

"Enough for what?"

"Enough to build a relationship on," Charlie continued. "I mean, my mom and dad were really different, but they had a good marriage."

Amita considered that. "You know, I don't know. I've always had things to talk about with the guys I dated, but afterwards, I felt like we didn't really say anything." She let out a husky chuckle that sent a tingle down Charlie's back. "Discussions with you leave me…stimulated."

"Stimulated? Really."

"Yeah. I mean, I've never talked to another guy who could really push my…mind like that." She giggled as a rolled up sock bounced off her sleeping bag.

"Your _mind_?" Charlie sounded indignant, but there was a muffled snickering noise coming from his side of the cave.

"Yeah. I'm a deep woman."

Another hush grew, but this one was broken by an occasional snicker or chuckle. Eventually, the cave grew quiet as they both fell asleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Saturday Morning

Amita woke at first light, cold and stiff. She tried stretching, but her sore muscles complained with every movement. Rolling over, she saw that Charlie was still asleep. The bandages on his head had come off in the night, and there were nasty bruises surrounding the cuts. His eye showed a dark shadow under it, but she didn't know if it was a bruise or just a shadow.

His hair really tangled around his face, and asleep, he looked much younger than his thirty years. She sighed. It really wasn't surprising that they all treated him like a kid. He didn't look his age, he didn't really act his age, and all his innocence did was enhance the image. He really was very attractive, and she found her stomach twisting excitedly as she relived the kisses from the day before.

She blushed as she remembered the conversation they'd had. It was amazing at what you could say in the dark while not having to look at the other person. Rolling over, she tried to go back to sleep. It took quite a while before she realized that nature was not going to allow her to sleep, so she slipped out of the cave as quietly as she could.

When she got back, Charlie was sitting up pulling on a CalSci sweatshirt. He looked up at her as she began giggling.

"What's so funny?" he asked, frowning.

"I was just looking at your hair, and I realized what mine must look like," she said as she walked back over and snuggled back into her sleeping bag.

Charlie struggled to his feet, still using the backpack frame as a cane. She blushed as she realized that he had the same need she'd just relieved. Looking the other way, she burrowed down in the bag and tried to warm back up. It was still rather chilly out there.

She tried to give him privacy, but he was gone so longer she was beginning to worry that he'd fallen and hurt himself again. However, she heard the metallic scraping soon as he limped his way back into his sleeping bag.

Getting up, she met him and helped him sit back down. Without saying anything, she began checking the cuts on his head. She was amazed and a little hurt that he let her work on him without trying to kiss her again. He just sat there with his eyes closed and his jaw clenched. Once she finished there, she moved on to his knee. The swelling had gone down a little, but the bruising around it had gotten darker. She felt him tensing as she rewrapped it.

A gentle touch on her hand got her attention. Charlie was back to being unsure of himself.

"Why don't we see what's for breakfast?" she asked quickly, automatically trying to smooth the situation over.

"Amita."

She turned back to him to meet him in a kiss. When they parted, he whispered, "I'm sorry."

Stunned, she stammered, "Wh-what? Sorry about what?"

"Sorry that I'll never be romantic. I'll never be like the guys in, in the movies…"

"Charlie," she said with a touch of smile, "Don't ever try to compare yourself to other guys. You're not like other guys, because you're special."

Charlie grinned quickly and ducked his head to hide it.

"What?" she asked suspiciously.

"You sound just like my mother," he said quietly.

"Oh."

Don sat at his desk that afternoon, shuffling paperwork around but not actually accomplishing anything. There weren't many people in the office on a weekend, although he had seen Megan wondering around, but he couldn't stand just waiting around his apartment. He was waiting for Charlie to come back into cell range and return some of the messages that had been left. Alan's unease the night before had transferred to him. Every time he tried to convince himself that Charlie was just fine, a mental picture of him lying at the bottom of a mountain popped in to destroy his calm.

He was still trying to convince himself that everything was fine when his cell phone rang. Taking only a split second to check the caller ID, he felt his stomach fall when he saw that it was not Charlie, but Larry.

"Yeah?"

"Hello, Don?"

In spite of himself, Don had to smile. Larry had called his cell, but then still asked to make sure it was him? "Yeah, it's me. Is Charlie with you?"

"How did you know?"

Don sucked in his breath. "How did I know what?"

"That he never showed up with the group yesterday."

"He didn't? Do you have any idea where he might be?"

"Well, Amita said that she was going to take him out to see something and they would meet up with us about noon yesterday."

"Wait. Amita's with him?"

"Yes. Amita was the one who gave him a ride to the rendezvous. She used to hike up there in high school and said she had something to show Charles. Do you think something happened to them?"

"I don't know. Why didn't you call this in earlier?"

"Well, I first thought that they had changed their minds about going until I saw their car at the drop-off point. Then I couldn't get a signal on my phone until we got out here on the highway."

"Thanks for the heads-up. I'll get started on finding him."

"Good luck, Don."

Panic shot through Don for a second before he got himself under control. He grabbed his gun and his jacket and headed for the elevator.

"Don!" He whirled around at Megan's call. "What's wrong?"

"Dad was right. Charlie's missing!"

"What?"

"Larry just called me." He turned back to leave, forcing the profiler to keep pace to hear his explanation. "Charlie and Amita never showed up with the group, but their car is out at the rendezvous."

"Don, you can't go out by yourself," Megan protested.

"Well, someone's got to go find him. I don't have time to wait for a search and rescue."

"That's exactly what you need to do." She grabbed him and pulled him to a stop. "If you go out there half-cocked you're not going to accomplish a thing. The search and rescue guys are trained to handle this kind of situation. You will accomplish more with more people and finding out some information first. Did Larry see them on the way hiking back out?"

"I don't know," Don was forced to admit.

"Does anyone know if Charlie or Amita would have sidetracked for anything?"

Don looked at her. "Yeah. Larry said Amita wanted to show Charlie something. She used to hike in that area."

"Well, then, we can call her parents. They would have a better idea of where to start." Megan stared at him. "You know better than this. What's the first thing you need to do when someone goes missing?"

"You're right. I panicked. Fine. You call in the missing persons report and talk to Amita's parents. They probably don't know she's missing yet. I'll go home and get my gear and then we'll meet out at the drop-off point is and start looking there." He checked for her acceptance. "Does that sound better?"

"Much." She gave Don a quick hug. "We'll find him. Now good luck telling your dad."

"Damn! I forgot about Dad." He shrugged into his jacket. "I guess I'll head there first."

"Yeah. I'll keep you updated." Megan watched him take off. "Good luck."

Charlie and Amita spent the day deepening their newfound rapport. They cuddled up together and discussed math and physics theories, little personal stories, and of course, more kissing. Neither one of them actually said out loud that the chances of being found that day were practically nonexistent. Even if Larry did get out and report them missing, it would be late afternoon and a search party wouldn't even be mobilized until dark. The next day was much more likely.

As dark was falling, Amita crawled over and began preparations to spend the night on her side of the cave again.

"No, don't do that," Charlie said. "Bring your stuff over here."

"What?"

"Please. I was cold last night, and I'm sure you were, too. We'll be better off if we combine the two sleeping bags and share them."

"Charlie, are you sure?" she asked.

"I will be a perfect gentleman, but I just laid there and ached all over because I was cold. I figure you're probably as bruised up as me, so a warmer bed tonight won't hurt either of us."

His argument was logical and tempting, and to be truthful, Amita hadn't wanted to spend another frigid night trying to find enough warmth in the cold stone floor. She brought her gear over and they used the remaining light to fashion the sleeping bags together.

The newly doubled bed looked large enough, but they discovered that the size was deceiving. Once in the bed there was barely enough room for the two of them. The rounded sides of the bags pushed them together. On the other hand, they were both almost instantly warmer.

They finally found a comfortable position, Charlie lying on his back and Amita curled on her side beside him. The teasing chatter of the night before seemed inappropriate to the situation.

In spite of the awkwardness, Amita fell asleep very quickly. In the pitch dark, Charlie listened to her even breathing as she shifted slightly in her sleep. He couldn't see her features, but he knew them by heart. Silently he began wondering what would happen to them when they returned to the real world.

It was easy to use an extreme situation like this to bond in, but he knew that the social awkwardness he suffered from could tear them apart once they were back on campus. Charlie knew of several young men she'd dated since they had started working together, and not for the first time, wondered how he measured up against them. This was not a new concern; he had grown up in Don's shadow and used his brother as a gauge of normality.

A strange noise woke him up, and he lay still to see if he could figure out what the problem was. He guessed that it was very early morning hours, but he couldn't verify that because the light in his watch was broken. The noise was repeated before he finally identified it.

Little moans came from Amita as she twitched beside him. As carefully as he could and trying to ignore his aching knee, he rolled over to face her and put his arm around her, trying to calm her nightmare. The moans became worse until suddenly she jerked awake with his name on her lips.

"Amita, it's okay. It was just a dream," he whispered as he ran his hand up and down her back. "It was just a dream." Charlie had vivid memories of his parents doing the same thing for him when he was younger, and found that he felt much better giving comfort than receiving it. "It's okay. You're okay."

To his utter shock, she burst into tears. This was a totally new experience for him, and one he felt extremely ill-equipped to deal with. He let her cry for a few minutes until she seemed to be calming down. "Amita, what's wrong?"

"I don't know," she whispered miserably. "I know something awful happened in my dream, but I can't remember what. I just have these awful feelings."

He pulled her face toward his and gently kissed her forehead. She sighed and curled up closer to him, clinging to him to for support. It took them both a while to get back to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

Sunday Morning

Don paced around the graveled parking lot. Twice he started up the trail and twice he turned himself back to wait for the others. By the time everything had been reported, gathered, and ready, it had been dark. The search team captain, once apprised of the situation, said that the area was too dangerous to search by night. They would get started at first light.

Looking at the sky again and comparing it to the slow-moving hands of his watch, he made another circuit around the parking lot. Waiting until first light was killing him.

Within ten minutes, just as the sky was beginning to lighten, cars began showing up. The search team assembled, and just as the sun was peeking over the horizon they set out.

Don had gotten a GPS fix on his brother's phone, which let him know that at least his brother had turned it on. He knew the basic area to start looking, and led his group there while the rest of the party spread out to check surrounding areas.

The scene last night had not been pretty as Alan wavered between bemoaning that they didn't start looking for him earlier and assuring Don that his apologies were unnecessary. His father had wanted to come out and search, too, but somehow or another he managed to convince his father to stay at home and wait by the phone.

The trek out was very slow. Once they saw footprints that could have been the missing hikers, but no one was sure. The area was widely used. Then, too, evidence of debris from the earthquake had obliterated large stretches of the trail, leaving treacherous conditions in its place.

By midmorning the only excitement was calling for help to escort a searcher out of the area. He had slipped in the loose soil and sprained his ankle. Don chafed at the delay while they stayed with him, but understood the necessity.

They stopped for a quick cold lunch on top of a ridge. Don sat and looked over the sight as he ate. Charlie should be all right. He and Don had been train by Alan from their teens to take care of themselves. Briefly he wondered if Charlie had spent his free time calculating the odds of being found.

They followed the ridge all the way out to the point. There were no signs of the missing pair, so after consulting maps and data, the decision was made to start covering the area to each side of the ridge. Don looked around and decided to start out from the point where they'd stopped for lunch. He couldn't understand why, but he just felt like that was a good place to start.

Looking around carefully, he began trying to find a safe way down the hill. The geological structure of the area showed a lot of fresh earth, showing the damage caused by the recent tremor. He was several feet down when his feet slid out from under him. Digging his heels in, Don slowed his decent. Still, he ended up about halfway down the slope before he stopped completely. Carefully, he felt around, trying to find solid ground to stabilize himself on. As his hands cast around, he touched something that was definitely not a rock.

Sifting through the gravel and sand, he pulled the item out to find that he was holding Charlie's cell phone. Don called out to the rest of the team as he pulled the phone out of the torn case. It was not broken.

Don looked around. If they fell, they would've gone straight down. Seeing a boulder sitting several yards below him, he carefully scooted toward it, keeping his eyes open for other clues that Charlie and Amita had been there. He reached the rock and used it to look around. The debris had been disturbed here. Looking more carefully, he investigated a suspiciously familiar smudge on the rock. His stomach dropped as he realized that it was blood.

He breathed a small sigh of relief when he realized that there wasn't very much of it. Odds were, they slid down the hill and scraped something against the stone. He tried to determine if he could see whether there were tracks there. A gouge in the debris caught his attention, and he looked closer. It was a shoe print.

From there on the trail became clearer. He could see tracks and some kind of strange markings. Within minutes, he found the cave.

Charlie and Amita had packed all their belongings up as soon as they woke up that morning. The fact that they had woken in each other's arms had started the day on an uncomfortable note. Conversation was minimal; their energy was spent straining to hear if here was anyone coming to find them.

He tried to keep his spirits up, but he found himself dealing with an extremely irrational desire to not be found. The relationship that he and Amita had begun here in the cave was the best thing that he could remember in his life, and he knew that the rescue would tear them apart. Realistically, he knew that they needed to get home. His knee, despite his assurances to Amita, would need medical attention. Their food situation would last them maybe two more days, and after that… The odds were not particularly  
good if they were out here longer than that, but Charlie had to believe that the search party was out there right now.

A weight on his side startled him. He hadn't noticed it, but Amita had given up and fallen asleep against him. Carefully, he eased her down so that she could lay across him a little more comfortably. After her nightmare she couldn't go back to sleep soundly. In fact, she kept him awake with her tossing and turning.

He was absently stroking her hair when a noise outside got his attention. Listening closer, he could hear gravel shifting, then again. The footsteps got closer. By the time he had prepared himself, Don appeared in the opening.

"Charlie!" Don stared at his brother and decided that he'd never looked so good. "Are you all right?"

The sound of Don's voice woke Amita with a start, who sat up quickly. Don saw that Charlie had been touching her but didn't process the information as he rushed over to them.

"Hey, Don. Nice to see you," Charlie joked weakly.

"Amita, are you all right?"

She nodded and moved away from Charlie slightly.

"How about you, buddy? You hurt?"

"He can't walk on his knee. It's twisted or something," Amita said, her voice subdued.

Don immediately began checking Charlie. He noticed the bruises on his head, but since he was sitting up and talking clearly, he wasn't as worried about them. Instead he focused on the knee.

It was easy to see which one was injured, even through his jeans. Don pulled out his utility knife and sliced the leg off above the knee.

"Hey, these are my favorite jeans," he protested.

"Now they're your favorite shorts," his brother returned. Carefully removing the wrap, he assessed the injury. "Yeah, looks like you've really torn it up." He looked at them. "Is this why you came down here and stayed?"

"Statistically, there's a better chance of being found if you stay in one place and together," Charlie quoted absently.

Once the physical problems had been assessed, Don began to wonder about Charlie and Amita's behavior. Neither one of them acted like they were really happy about being found, which surprised the agent.

"Hey. The rest of the search party's out there, and we can get you guys out of here now." Dutifully, Amita rose and reached a hand to Charlie. He took it and began pulling himself up to a standing position.

"Here," and Don pulled his brother's arm up over his shoulder and began moving him forward.

"My stuff," Charlie began.

"I'll send one of the others for it," Don said quickly. "Let's just get you home."

The trip back out was quiet except for the steps crunching in the gravel. Neither Charlie nor Amita spoke; Don noticed the odd looks were exchanged more than once.

The ambulance ride was anticlimactic, although Alan fussed over Charlie once he met them at the hospital. Amita was checked and released, but they kept Charlie overnight for observations.


	4. Chapter 4

Monday Morning

Don waited at the front desk while a nurse wheeled Charlie out to the lobby. He was carrying a set of crutches and looked exhausted.

"How you doing, buddy?" Don asked.

Charlie nodded. "Fine."

Don worked hard at keeping things light, but by the time they were settled in the car and on the way home, he knew that something was up with his brother.

"So, the doctors said your head was okay?"

"Yeah."

"What about your knee?"

"Tore something."

Don was surprised. Charlie usually kept his thoughts to himself, but this was closed up even for him.

"What's wrong?" Even as he said it, Don knew that was the wrong thing to say.

"Nothing."

"Are you sure?"

"I don't want to talk." Charlie realized that unless he gave a reason, his brother would keep on hounding him. "I'm just tired."

Had Charlie said anything but that Don would've kept going. The bruises were starting to fade, although the butterfly bandages covered most of what was left. He had a brace on his knee that forced his leg out straight. But the shadows under his eyes worried the agent.

Don got him home and helped him settle back in. Charlie insisted on using the crutches, not really with words but the obstinate look that told Don not to argue with him. Alan settled him on the couch and left him with the remote as the two of them left to discuss Charlie.

"Did the doctors say anything about his head?" Alan said as soon as they got to the kitchen.

"No concussion. Just a bump and a couple cuts." Don helped put dishes away as his father continued.

"Then why is he acting like this?"

Don shrugged. "Something happened between him and Amita up there, but he won't talk about it."

"Did they fight, do you think?" Alan mused. "He's never handled rejection well."

"I don't know, but something was up."

Charlie ignored the conversation in the kitchen and took advantage of their absence. He took out his newly returned cell phone and dialed Amita's number.

"Hello?"

"Hey." He paused. "Sorry. I just assumed that you'd be at school. I was expecting your voice mail."

"I stayed home today. So, are you home from the hospital?" she asked.

"Yeah. Listen, we need to talk. I'm going to see if I can get Dad and Don out of the house for a while. Would you be able to come over when they're gone?"

"I should, yeah."

"I've got to go. Call you back in a little bit."

He hung up the phone just Alan walked in. "Who were you talking to, Charlie?"

"No one." He sat back on the couch and waited for Alan to take a seat.

"Is there something you need to say, son?"

Charlie sat up. "Actually, Dad, there is."

Don interrupted as he walked through and grabbed his jacket. "Charlie, man, I hope you feel better, but I have to go back to work."

"Thanks for the ride, Don."

"Bye, Dad. I'll swing by tonight." He pulled the door shut.

"Now what were you going to say?" Alan asked, turning his attention back to Charlie.

"Dad, is there any way that you could possibly, um, maybe go shopping for a while or something? I just need some time, you know…alone."

Alan frowned. "You want me to leave?"

"Just for two or three hours," Charlie said quickly.

"Why?"

Charlie tried to explain. "Look, Dad. I just need some time to myself. Please?"

"I suppose I can," he stammered. He got up and pulled on his jacket. Hunting absentmindedly for his keys, he said, "Well, since I'm going out, is there anything you, um, want? Or need?"

"Dad, I'm fine." He watched Alan stand hesitantly before the door. "By the way, thanks."

As soon as he heard his bewildered father pull out of the driveway, he dialed Amita's number. Within twenty minutes, she was sitting on the other end of the sofa.

"So, what's wrong?" she said as she stared at him.

Charlie looked at her. "Listen. I want to, um…ask you something." He inhaled quickly. "After what we did this weekend, do…you, um… Would you consider committing to me?"

A smile tugged at her lips before vanishing. "Are you… asking me to…be your girlfriend?"

"I guess I am. Look, Amita, you are the most fascinating woman I've ever met. I love the fact that you share my deepest passion. I've always been considered weird for my obsession with math, and you've never once made me feel anything other than normal. And the truth is, until you came along, I never knew that there was anything really missing. So, yes, I am asking you to be my girlfriend."

She stared at him through his whole speech. "That was really hard for you to say, wasn't it?"

Grinning in relief, he said, "You have no idea. But I really meant it."

She crossed the distance before he could react. Her enthusiastic kiss was finally broken by her grin. "By the way, that was a yes."

The kissing actually didn't last as long as they expected. Instead, they ended up reclining against the arm of the couch, Amita lying across his chest with her head tucked up against his shoulder.

Twisting a dark curl around her finger, she said slowly, "I suppose we need to tell everyone."

"Do you mind? I mean, will it bother you?"

She raised her head up to stare at him. "That we're dating? No. Why would it?" Amita looked surprised, then a little hurt. "Are you embarrassed to be with me?"

"No! Of course not," he rushed to assure her. "I was really thinking kind of the other way around."

"Charlie, nothing about you makes me embarrassed to be seen to you! You're …perfect! You're, you're good-looking, you're…brilliant." She grabbed a handful of hair and tugged.

"Ow!"

"I'll do more than that if you start doubting yourself like that again," she threatened. "Now, how shall we break the news?"

They discussed possible options, but the stresses and lack of sleep from the past weekend caught up with them and they both dozed off mid-conversation. That was how Alan found them when he came home.


End file.
